Bernard Langan Bio
Bernard Langan has studied martial and restorative arts intensively for over 25 years and is an internationally respected instructor and practitioner of Ba Gua, Hsing-I, Wu and Chen Pan-ling style Tai Chi, Pentjak Silat, Eskrima, Taoist Nei Gung and Chi Gung. He is a specialist in the fields of Bodywork, Movement Education and Biomechanics. He has done extensive cross-discipline research in martial, meditative, healing and movement systems, and can clearly articulate the synthesis of this knowledge and impart these skills to his students. He has a thriving full time clinical practice and teaching studio in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Bernard is a certified practitioner of Advanced Zen Bodytherapy®, and Zen Triggerpoint Anatomy® by William S. “Dub” Leigh, D.Z., and the International Zen Therapy Institute, Inc. Mr. Leigh was certified to practice and teach the work of Ida Rolf Ph.D., Moshe Feldenkrais D.Sc., Lauren Berry, Raymond Nimmo D.C., and Rinzai Zen Master Tanyouye Tenshin Rotaishi. Mr. Leigh was also a member of the first ‘Trager work’ training program conducted by Milton Trager M.D..
Bernard is a member of the IASI, the International Association of Structural Integrators and is designated as a Professional Structural Integrator by the IASI. Structural Integration (SI) is a system of deep tissue bodywork and movement education developed by Ida P. Rolf. The primary goal of SI is to restore the body to its natural state of alignment and balance by organizing the body along the line of gravity.
Bernard is a certified practitioner of Somatic Education in the lineage of Thomas Hanna under the auspices of Eleanor Criswell Hanna, Ed.D., and the Novato Institute for Somatic Research and Training, and is a professional member of the AHSE, Association of Hanna Somatic Educators; and serves on the Association's Board of Directors. Hanna Somatic Education® is the direct, hands on method developed by Thomas Hanna for teaching voluntary conscious control of the neuromuscular system to persons suffering from involuntary muscular disorders. In Thomas Hanna’s words, “Hanna Somatic Education® is the most advanced system known for relieving chronic disorders which, otherwise, are untreatable by either medical or traditional therapeutic means.”
Bernard studied Craniosacral Orthopedics extensively under Dr. Curtis Turchin, D.C., M.A., who was a Bioenergetic Psychotherapist and practitioner of Postural Integration before becoming a successful Chiropractor. Dr. Turchin subsequently studied Craniosacral Orthopedics in the tradition of A.T. Still D.O., and William G. Sutherland D.O.. Bernard has continued to train with Dr. Turchin in Advanced Laser and Light Therapy; the therapeutic applications of low level cold laser and infrared light for tissue regeneration.
Bernard is a practitioner of traditional Aboriginal energetic and physical healing modalities under Gerry Bostock, an Australian Aboriginal Healer of the Bundjalung Tribe.
Bernard’s primary Chinese Internal Arts teacher is world renowned Master Luo De Xiu of Tai Pei, Taiwan. Other distinguished martial arts instructors include: Hadji Yasser Tanadjalan of the Moro Yakan Tribe in Basilan, Mindanao, Philippines; Bruce Juchnik, Hanshi of Kosho Shorei Ryu; and Chinese Internal Arts Masters - Sam F.S. Chin, Ron Wilkerson, B.K. Frantzis, Wang Hao Da, Cai Sai Fang and Fong Ha.
Bernard is a Lineage Holder and Full Guru (Instructor) under Maha Guru “Pak” Victor de Thouars in the Indonesian art of Pentjak Silat Sera-Serak. Bernard is an Instructor of ODF (Offensive Defensive Force) under Maha Guru Pak Victor de Thouars founder of the ODF/ODT (Offensive Defensive Force/Offensive Defensive Technology) Close Quarter Combat Systems.
Bernard became a private student of the late Maestro Sonny Umpad in the Philippine art of Visayan Eskrima in 1997, and is a Lineage Holder and Guro (Instructor) of the Visayan Style of Corto Kadena / Largo Mano Eskrima.
Bernard is a member of the Pentjak Silat Serak Council of Elders and is a senior advisor to MACS, the Martial Arts Collective Society.
In addition teaching seminars in the United States and Europe, Bernard has been a featured instructor for several years at the Kosho Gatherings, Chi Ling Pai Gung Fu Training Camps, and at the “Ring of Fire” events. In June of 2003 - 2008 he was/is a featured martial arts instructor alongside Guru Dan Inosanto, protégé of the late Bruce Lee.
Bernard’s personal practice has also been influenced and deepened by the teachings of: Taoist Yoga and Tai Shing Pek-Kwar Master Paulie Zink; Shandor Remete, founder of the Shadow school of Hatha Yoga; and Torsten Kanzmeier founder of Lei Gong Nei Quan, a martial arts practice with roots in the Shamanic tradition of the Sámi people of Lapland.
Bernard’s related cross training includes: Chinese Bodywork (Tui Na), 5 Element Diagnostic Theory, Visceral Manipulation, Myofascial Release, Taoist and Zen Meditation, Taoist Yoga, I-Chuan, I-Liq Chuan, Mindanao Silat Asli, Kosho Shorei Ryu Kempo, Chi Lin Chuan Fa, Eight Drunken Immortals Kung Fu, Aikido, Pangai Noon/Uechi-Ryu Karate (Black Belt), Wing Chun, Southern Praying Mantis, Tibetan Lung Ta, Western and Thai Boxing, Kuntao, Dumog, Moro-Moro, Sikaran, Kalari Payattu, Nata Yoga (Shiva Tandava), Hatha Yoga, Modern Dance, Feldenkrais Method, Gurdjieff Movements, Shamanism, and Chinese Tea Ceremony. He is a graduate of St. John’s College, Annapolis, Maryland with a degree in Philosophy.